A novel way to massively improve the SQ of computer audio streaming

[seeteeyou]

BTW, who's gonna be the first to ask Paul for designing something to power Mutec REF 10 with low impedance PSU?

 

If only Davina could also accept a 10MHz master clock, oh well.

[seeteeyou]

For those of us who have serious cash to burn, maybe we could even go for Adnaco-S1B plus 3 more SOtM tX-USBexp Ultra?

 

https://www.adnaco.biz/collections/adnaco-s1b/products/adnaco-s1b-01-000-s

 

One clock from sCLK-EX will feed Adnaco-R1BP1B and the rest will feed each tX-USBexp respectively

 

http://www.adnaco.com/doc/Adnaco-R1BP1B-DS.pdf

 

So much jitter will be introduced by the optical conversion, most likely it's kinda pointless to swap that clock included in Adnaco-H1A-01 host adapter since that's placed before the optical conversion?

 

BTW, is Lexar CFR1 the "only" decent USB-to-CF card reader that's still widely available?

 

http://www.cameramemoryspeed.com/reviews/card-readers/lexar-professional-workflow-cfr1/

http://www.lexar.com/products/card-readers/Lexar-Professional-Workflow-line-of-products.html#SKU=LRWCFR1TBNA

[seeteeyou]

Just saw this Compute Card from Intel with quite a few options, maybe it's a good candidate for audiophile carrier boards?

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/compute-card/intel-compute-card.html

https://liliputing.com/2017/05/intel-compute-card-specs-leaked-apollo-lake-kaby-lake-models.html

http://www.cnx-software.com/2017/05/29/intel-compute-card-apollo-lake-and-kaby-lake-skus-block-diagrams-and-partial-specifications/

 

And then here's NexDock

 

http://nexdock.com

https://liliputing.com/2017/01/intel-compute-card-will-upgradeable-brains-2nd-gen-nexdock-laptop-dock.html

http://www.cnx-software.com/2017/01/18/nexdock-is-working-on-a-hybrid-laptop-dock-for-intel-compute-cards/

 

i5-7Y57 could go all the way down to 3.5W while both N3450 and N4200 are capable of running at 4W

 

https://ark.intel.com/products/95596/Intel-Celeron-Processor-N3450-2M-Cache-up-to-2_2-GHz

https://ark.intel.com/products/95592/Intel-Pentium-Processor-N4200-2M-Cache-up-to-2_5-GHz

https://ark.intel.com/products/95449/Intel-Core-m3-7Y30-Processor-4M-Cache-2_60-GHz-

https://ark.intel.com/products/97461/Intel-Core-i5-7Y57-Processor-4M-Cache-up-to-3_30-GHz

[seeteeyou]

Improving USB Audio

http://www.johnkenny.biz/home-1/announcements/improvingusb

 

http://www.tirnahifi.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=3618&start=150

Quote

You might be interested in the just launched ISO-PS an isolated power supply using LiFePO4 batteries
Outputs one or two 3.3V independent supplies or combined to give one 6.6V supply (other voltages can be considered - just ask) - perfect for pwerig many audio devices - see my signature for website
Internal battery chargers are isolated from power supply so no bleed through of noise from leakage currents or ground loops
Fully automatic - just plug in & forget

 

http://www.tirnahifi.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=15&t=3640&start=190

Quote

You know you could replace "JCAT Intona => USB adapter (with silver wires) => Ifi 2 USB => Regen (JK moded)" with a nice neat ISO-HUB which houses a USB isolator (better than Intona) + USB reclocker/reformer (better than Regen even battery powered) & all running off 2 LiFePO4 batteries with chargers, all cased up in a black case

 

ISO-PS for €250

 

http://www.ciunas.biz/product-page/iso-ps

 

ISO-HUB for €450

 

http://www.ciunas.biz/product-page/iso-hub-external-power

 

Just found something new today, now the question is how good would genuine A123 Systems LiFePO4 with ISO-PS actually sound when compared to LPS-1 etc.

 

http://www.a123systems.com/lifepo4-battery-cell.htm

http://www.a123systems.com/lithium-iron-phosphate-battery.htm

http://www.batteryspace.com/A123-System-Nanophosphate-LiFePO4-18650-Rechargeable-Cell-3.2V-1100mAh.aspx

 

A123 Lithium Nanophosphate

https://www.audioasylum.com/forums/pcaudio/messages/7/77068.html

 

Batteries in Audio

http://rockgrotto.proboards.com/thread/5941/batteries-audio

[seeteeyou]

Interesting to see how the owners of Singxer SU-1 were replacing regulators with much better ones

 

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/29553-my-very-mini-review-of-the-singxer-su-1-ddc/

 

Could we also reap the benefits if we're willing to void the warranty of other audiophile products?

 

http://www.ldovr.com/category-s/118.htm

https://www.belleson.com/store/index.php

http://sparkoslabs.com/discrete-voltage-regulators/

 

Sometimes it's such a pity to feed a motherboard with DC input while spending quite a bit on a decent linear PSU, then all that nice power would be kinda "ruined" by lousy regulators.

 

It's so much easier to bypass the regulators if something were designed just like RATOC Audio Lab RAL-KCM3MB01 since we could actually feed 1.8V and 3.3V separately

 

http://www.ratocaudiolab.com/product/kit/ral_kcm3mb01/index.html

 

[seeteeyou]

On 6/16/2017 at 4:53 AM, RickyV said:

Hi all,

I have been mailing with May from Sotm. She said that it is possible to replace a crystek 575 clock with one of the sCLK-ex tabs given the correct voltage and frequency. 

Thats all the info they need for all xo's you want to replace, frequency and voltage.

 

Just wondering if something similar were applicable if we're talking about DAC such as Chord Hugo 2 and Chord Mojo?

 

XTAL1 and XTAL2 don't look like such a challenge to replace IMHO

 

 

Both of them could be charged via USB so 5V DC from LPS-1 should be OK?

 

 

BTW, I looked at the list of toys available with 10 MHz master clock inputs but none of them seemed to be all that interesting to me

• ESOTERIC G-0、G-0s、G-0Rb、G-02、G-03X、G-25U、K-01、K-01X、K-03、K-03X、K-05、K-05X、K-07、K-07X、D1、D-02、D-02X、D-07X、P1、P-02、P-02X、N-05
• TASCAM CG1000
• dcs dcs992II、Vivaldi
• Antelope Audio Isochrone OCX HD、OCX-V、OCX、TRINITY
• BRAINSTORM DCD-8
• Phasetech HD-7A
• Phasemation HD-7A192
• SFORZATO DST-01、DSP-03、DSP-05
• TEAC UD-503、NT-503
• SPEC RMP-X1
• Sound Warrior SWD-CL10
• TechDAS D-7、D7i
• RATOC RAL-DSDHA2
• M2TECH EVO DAC TWO PLUS、HIFACE EVO TWO
• CH Precision C1
• Aurender W20

In other words, it should make more sense to void the warranty of a decent yet fairly inexpensive DAC (stuff from Chord should be good enough?) by replacing the clocks with sCLK-EX and then add the master clock later on.

 

Since it's best to save an excellent clock for the one that's closest to the DAC itself, how about we just do that inside the DAC by modifying it?

 

Not sure if anyone were having serious balls to mod Chord DAVE as well as DAVINA in the future?

[seeteeyou]

An audiophile here in Hong Kong (ThomasLi) added GPSDO to his dCS Vivaldi full stack and that turned out to be effective upgrade

 

http://www.hiendy.com/hififorum/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=82136
http://www.hiendy.com/hififorum/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=84115

 

GPSDO should cost roughly 120 bucks in China, as usual there's a catch since both quality power and clock cables are mission critical. In other words, GPSDO itself should be relatively cheap but we must know how to feed that properly

 

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=38893473067
https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=42336500072
https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=43019130458
https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=528444781495
https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=540879583214
https://www.amazon.com/DISCiPLINED-CLOCK-GPSDO-OUTPUT-SQUARE/dp/B01B2HZP90
http://www.ebay.com/itm/GPS-DISCiPLINED-CLOCK-GPSDO-10M-OUTPUT-SQUARE-WAVE-power-supply-Antenna-/111514491254
http://www.ebay.com/itm/GPS-Receiver-GPSDO-10MHz-1PPS-GPS-Disciplined-Clock-with-Antenna-Power-Supply-/251802969291
http://www.ebay.com/itm/GPS-DISCiPLINED-CLOCK-GPSDO-10MHz-10M-OUTPUT-SQUARE-WAVE-RS232-OUTPUT-GPS-NMEA-/281649576001
http://www.ebay.com/itm/GPS-DISCiPLINED-CLOCK-GPSDO-10MHz-10M-OUTPUT-SQUARE-WAVE-RS232-OUTPUT-GPS-NMEA-/131663521573

 

Like what I mentioned before, DAC options available with 10 MHz master clock inputs are either too cheap (overkill to add an expensive Mutec REF 10) or costing a bit too much. We don't wanna feed such a nice master clock to the source while it's being held back by the relatively inferior clocks inside the DAC itself.

 

In other words, we better find the right DAC to modify and replace the clocks inside that IMHO.

[seeteeyou]

http://www.sotm-audio.com/sotmwp/english/portfolio-item/sclk-ex/

Quote

Power output
  All output use ultra low noise regulator circuit
  5V, 0.5A x 1
  3.3V, 0.5A x 1

 

Did anyone find out if they're able to offer an option to bypass the regulator circuit? Just feed one LPS-1 to 3.3V input and another LPS-1 to 5V input separately.

[seeteeyou]

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/30376-a-novel-way-to-massively-improve-the-sq-of-the-sms-200-and-microrendu/?page=83#comment-665731

Quote

He also believes this card with the sCLK-EX may be his very best audiophile component, better than the sMS-200ultra and tX-USBultra.

 

48 MHz for tX-USBexp and 25 MHz for ISO REGEN respectively, then maybe 12 MHz (it looked like T120 in the picture of XTAL2 below but the frequency could be something else?) for Atmel USB input chip ATSAM3U1C and 104.25 MHz for Chord DAC afterwards. I guess that's the ideal setup with all four outputs of sCLK-EX since we're taking care of everything related to USB plus the DAC itself?

 

http://www.microchip.com/wwwproducts/en/ATSAM3U1C

http://www.atmel.com/Images/Atmel-6430-32-bit-Cortex-M3-Microcontroller-SAM3U4-SAM3U2-SAM3U1_Datasheet.pdf

 

 

[seeteeyou]

 

 

https://community.roonlabs.com/t/allo-reclocker-dac-amp-for-raspberry-pi/16263

Quote

Allo DACs together with reclocker (127$/ 153$) are certainly much better than Audiophonics I-Sabre V3 DAC ES9023 (83$), and almost on the level of Antelope Zodiac+ (2500$).

 

Quote

For me Piano 2.1 PCM 5142 DAC sounded better than Piano PCM 5122, and was almost impossible to differentiate Piano 2.1 PCM 5142 DAC form Antelope Zodiac+ with exception of high frequency handling.

 

https://community.roonlabs.com/t/allo-boss-dac-review/20575

Quote

Also I compared the Boss to combination of Kali clocker and Piano DAC. I didn’t believe what I heard… the Boss was so much better!!!
Boss sounded much more colorful, dynamic, with rich bass, broad sound volume, and wide stereo base. Kali+Piano in comparison was still giving accurate sound, but more flat and short.

 

Quote

Same excellent impression from the Boss DAC here. I now use it in my main rig. Tried to power the Pi with an Uptone lps1 and did not notice a difference. Will do some further tests but I doubt my first impressions will change.

 

https://community.roonlabs.com/t/allo-digione-board/18564

Quote

BTW...we made one last change on production units. We seen now the jitter at 0.411ps

 

Quote

 

uRendu , SOtM and USBridge have USB outputs. Thats why I was saying its easier to compare.

 

As of right now...we are not aware of anything on the market that has the same clean output and low jitter on spidif , like DigiOne. There is simply nothing like it from a technical point of view.
The real test is in your hands, How does the low jitter/noise translate to SQ in your system. Please share after testing.

 

 

VERY interesting stuff for those of us who would like to stay away from USB altogether.

 

And then they've got something nice for someone who would like to stick with USB with IR as well as tX-USBultra etc.

 

https://allo.com/sparky/usbridge.html

http://www.forum-hifi.fr/thread-4505.html

http://www.audiophonics.fr/en/interfaces/allo-usbridge-usb-interface-sparky-emmc-16gb-acrylic-case-p-12073.html

Performance seemed to be pretty good with the default clocks from NDK, let's imagine the potential once we've replaced them with sCLK-EX or even adding REF 10 on top of that.

 

They've got all bases covered as well - USB, S/PDIF, and I2S

 

http://sparkyforum.allo.com

 

Maybe that's the way to go if we're building an audiophile Roon endpoint with an integrated DAC via I2S connection, that's easier to keep all four clock cables under 30 cm while having the luxury of feeding that DAC with sCLK-EX.

[seeteeyou]

The sCLK-EX board itself is a separate component and theoretically it could be installed anywhere, although the proximity to the modified component is a high priority.

 

In other words, we've gotta keep the clock cable(s) really short and obviously we're installing sCLK-EX board inside the chassis of tX-USBultra in this case.

 

The master clock input is an option for $150

 

http://www.sotm-audio.com/sotmwp/english/shop/sclk/

http://www.sotm-audio.com/sotmwp/english/portfolio-item/sclk-ex/

Quote

External master clock input : Optional
  Input frequency : 10MHz (Optional other frequency available)
  Isolated 50Ω external clock input : U.FL connector x 1
  Isolated 75Ω external clock input : MCX connector x 1
  Differential clock signal input & internal distribution

 

It's also mentioned in the manual as shown below

 

https://www.docs.sotm-audio.com/lib/exe/fetch.php?media=manuals:sclk-ex_operating_instructions_rev1.6_-_en.pdf#page=7

 

Basically we've gotta pay for this option if we're interested in adding Mutec REF 10 in the future:

 

Isolated 75Ω external clock input : MCX connector x 1

 

And then we'll also have to invest in one of those coaxial cables terminated with 75Ω BNC connectors on both ends. Habst made one with a separate ground wire and romaz will test it out soon

 

http://www.habst.de/index.php/digital-xlr-rca-bnc.html

 

Acoustic Revive also made another one called CLOCK-1.0BNC-TripleC-FM with Hitachi Metals FINEMET

 

http://pro.acoustic-revive.com/clock-1-0bnc-triplec-fm/

http://www.hitachi-metals.co.jp/e/products/elec/tel/p02_21.html

 

They even made an isolated one with DC 10V ~ 15V input

 

http://www.acoustic-revive.com/english/dsix1/dsix1_01.html

http://www.acoustic-revive.com/japanese/dsix1/dsix1_01.html

http://product.rakuten.co.jp/product/-/a817593473e7cace92b29df421bf5a70/

 

Entreq made quite a few BNC cables and they're similar to that one from Habst with separate connectors for their ground cables

 

 

Yeah, it's still quite a bit of toys once we've decided to throw Mutec REF 10 into the mix.

[seeteeyou]

Actually it's gonna be an option for $210 ($990 versus $1,200) if we're adding that master clock input for the sCLK-EX board inside tX-USBultra

 

http://www.sotm-audio.com/sotmwp/english/shop/tx-usbultra/

 

1 hour ago, rickca said:

Re the SOtM master clock input feature.  It only makes sense to have this feature on a component that hosts the sCLK-EX board, is that right?

 

SOtM master clock input feature (i.e. 75Ω external clock input) could only be added to the sCLK-EX board itself as shown in the manual, though we could theoretically remove the sCLK-EX board and put it anywhere we want.

 

1 hour ago, rickca said:

IOW if you get a tX-USBultra and use two of the clocks to upgrade an sMS-200 to an sMS-200ultra, you only want the master clock input on the tx-USBultra?  Isn't the master clock input a feature of the sCLK-EX board itself?

 

Now I see what you're looking for, let's say we're already owners of the original sMS-200 and then we're paying for that 990 + 210 = $1,200 tX-USBultra. It's like killing two birds with one stone.

 

More specifically, tX-USBultra should include two components inside one chassis. The sCLK-EX board itself is installed inside the same chassis for obvious reasons.

 

And then there's only one place to add the master clock input, it must be added to the sCLK-EX board itself and nowhere else. It must be done by SOtM before tX-USBultra is shipped and we don't have even have any other ways.

 

Basically we'll find one master clock input with one MCX connector (larger one) in addition to two outputs with a pair of U.FL connectors (smaller ones) like this:

It's fairly straightforward when we're connecting Mutec REF 10 to that larger MCX connector.

 

However, we'll have to ask SOtM to find out what's the best way to get the upgrade path done for sMS-200 while investing in tX-USBultra as a "double whammy" so to speak. They'll have to replace the clocks inside an existing sMS-200 anyways and maybe we've gotta send sMS-200 back to Korea?

[seeteeyou]

ICYMI - JS posted something relevant to our discussions and it's a good read IMHO

 

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/31857-mutec-ref-10-masterclock/?page=8#comment-677651

Once again I'd like to stress the importance of quality power and clock cables, they could "make or break" the benefits of an excellent clock. Therefore we could very well be talking about a major upgrade or a serious downgrade.

 

Some of them might be believers of the "cables make no differences" camp but the now both quantity (i.e. the length *AND* more importantly the 75Ω impedance) as well as quality are both mission critical.

 

Mutec REF 10 already came with a decent PSU by default so that's a relief. And then we'll have to provide quality power for sCLK-EX with these guys:

 

Paul Hynes Power Supplies
UpTone Audio UltraCap LPS-1
Vinnie Rossi MINI PURE DC-4-EVR

[seeteeyou]

More good news regarding Allo DigiOne, a nice option for those of us who would like to avoid everything related to USB signal integrity etc.

 

http://forum-hifi.fr/thread-4520.html

Allo DigiOne board

https://community.roonlabs.com/t/allo-digione-board/18564

 

DigiOne Coaxial/BNC output for RPI

https://volumio.org/forum/digione-coaxial-bnc-output-for-rpi-t6219.html

 

HiFIBerry Digi+ Pro and Allo DigiOne Volumio special Version : Unofficial Portings

https://volumio.org/forum/hifiberry-digi-pro-and-allo-digione-volumio-special-version-t6849.html

 

10% off

https://www.allo.com/sparky/digione.html

 

 

Quote

10 LDOs, 12 LPF, DC/DC convertors, galvanic isolator, WM8805, flip flops, buffers, NDK oscillators.

 

Those clocks could be accessed easily and we should know what to do about them.

[seeteeyou]

We could find some router boards and they really don't cost that much to begin with

 

https://mqmaker.com/product/witi-board/

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=521875114158

http://www.cnx-software.com/2015/08/12/witi-openwrt-router-board-features-6-ethernet-ports-dual-band-wifi-sata-and-usb-3-0-ports-crowdfunding/

http://www.cnx-software.com/2015/12/14/witi-router-board-powered-by-mediatek-mt7621a-soc-now-sells-for-79/

 

The performance just sucked pretty bad, though

 

https://www.reddit.com/r/linux_devices/comments/51g93o/qmaker_witi_board_with_2xsata_6xgigabit_ethernet/

 

Maybe it's a better bet to go for something like APU3 ($107 to $127) with x86 processors? As usual the clocks could be replaced by SOtM with sCLK-EX

 

https://www.pcengines.ch/apu3b2.htm

http://blog.3mdeb.com/2017/05/12/openwrt_on_apu3/

https://www.linuxserver.io/2016/12/17/review-pcengines-apu2-c4-prebuilt-by-linitx/

https://www.lteforum.at/mobilfunk/pc-engines-apu2-open-source-lte-router-project-mc7455.6852/

[seeteeyou]

https://wiki.mikrotik.com/wiki/Manual:RouterOS_FAQ

https://ark.intel.com/products/76308/Intel-Core-i5-4300U-Processor-3M-Cache-up-to-2_90-GHz

 

We could even install both RouterOS and Roon Server on Jetway NF542 since i5-4300U should be powerful enough

 

https://centralcomputers.com/p-554322-jetway-hbjc512f3dp-1900-b-fanless-embedded-4-x-10100-lan-with-poe-up-to-25w-per-port-2-x-intel-gbe-lproductproduct.aspx
https://centralcomputers.com/p-554321-jetway-hbjc38af542xa-4300u-b-fanless-embedded-with-intel-haswell-i5-class-vpro-soc-6-x-intel-gbe-lanproductproduct.aspx

http://www.jetwaycomputer.com/JBC38AF542AA.html

http://www.jetwaycomputer.com/NF542.html

 

And then it's also fanless to boot, expandability should be unmatched for a relatively small size @ 110mm x 167mm.

• 1 SATA3 6Gb/s Cable-Free Connector
• 1 Shared mSATA/mini-PCI Express Combo slot (full-size)
• 1 Mini-PCI Express slot (full-size)
• 1 PCI Express 2.0 x1 side-slots, Supports Jetway GEN3 Daughter Boards
• 1 PCI Express 2.0 x4 side-slots, Supports Jetway GEN3 Daughter Boards

The only question is whether those PCIe slots are connected to the processor directly or going through PCH.

[seeteeyou]

Quote

Requirements for optional PSU: 5V/1.5A min

 

Bummer, just a little bit too much for LPS-1 to handle.

 

Anyways, it would be mighty interesting to modify the clock(s) and then replace that short USB cable with USPCB A>B Adapter after ISO REGEN is added:

 

[seeteeyou]

Such an audacious price tag (850 bucks) for this toy

 

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=553122278111
http://www.headphoneclub.com/thread-535979-1-1.html
http://www.headphoneclub.com/thread-536681-1-1.html
http://www.headphoneclub.com/thread-536820-1-1.html
http://www.stereosound.com.cn/viewthread.php?tid=5938&page=29

http://www.stereosound.com.cn/viewthread.php?tid=7274

 

 

 

 

 

 

OCXO turned out to be custom-made as shown in the picture, so far the impressions seemed to be positive as long as USB cables on both ends ain't too bad.

 

Obviously it's a substantial investment and maybe it's more cost effective to get sCLK-EX with four clocks instead IMHO.

[seeteeyou]

41 minutes ago, limniscate said:

After this round of testing, I'd say that the switch probably has the largest effect.

 

That seemed to further explain why romaz was getting these results back in May

 

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/30376-a-novel-way-to-massively-improve-the-sq-of-the-sms-200-and-microrendu/?page=61#comment-658475

Quote

To add to the mystery, here's one more observation.  Over the weekend, a good friend lent me a pair of his SOtM dCBL-CAT7 ethernet cables ($500 each).  According to SOtM, combining a pair of these cables along with their iSO-CAT6 LAN isolator ($350) can lead to dramatic improvements.  As I already own (and have currently been using) SOtM's dCBL-CAT6 combined with their iSO-CAT 6 LAN isolator in my direct connection (which has resulted in decent gains in SQ over my BJC CAT6A by itself), I thought there would be no way their CAT7 Ethernet cable that incorporates a "filter" would do that much more.  Boy, was I wrong.  I elected to place SOtM's recommended "ultimate" combination of dCBL-CAT7 + iSO-CAT6 LAN isolator + dCBL-CAT7 between my Mac Mini and my Trend Net reclocking switch within the "direct connection" pathway and compared this against my dCBL-CAT6 by itself, a Supra CAT8 cable, and a BJC CAT6A cable and the improvement was nothing short of stunning in the form of a larger and more holographic soundstage and improved dynamics.  It's as if those other cables were suffocating my music.  The midrange sounded a bit more recessed than I would prefer but overall, the SQ improvement was tremendous and of similar impact as the reclocking switch itself!  In fact, it literally doubled the impact of the switch and nearly matched the improvement of the sMS-200 Ultra in terms of "air" and dynamics.

 

Now I actually understand why multiple audiophiles in Japan would shell out the cash for this endgame switch that's costing an arm and a leg, either all of them were "stupid" or the switch must be THAT good

 

http://audiofan2013.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-918.html
http://audiofan2013.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-919.html
http://audiofan2013.blog.fc2.com/blog-entry-920.html
http://asoyaji.blogspot.com/2017/02/m12-gold-switch.html
http://hyper-pc-audio.blogspot.com/2017/04/m12-gold-switch.html
http://hyper-pc-audio.blogspot.com/2017/04/m12-gold-switch1.html
http://hyper-pc-audio.blogspot.com/2017/05/asoyaji-dacm12-gold-switch.html
http://hyper-pc-audio.blogspot.com/2017/05/m12-switch-gold3.html
http://hyper-pc-audio.blogspot.com/2017/05/m12-switch-gold4.html
http://hyper-pc-audio.blogspot.com/2017/06/m12-switch-gold5.html
http://hyper-pc-audio.blogspot.com/2017/06/m12-switch-gold6.html
http://hyper-pc-audio.blogspot.com/2017/06/m12-switch-gold7.html

 

 

41 minutes ago, limniscate said:

The impressive aspect of the Singxer is that both @austinpop and I thought it sounded better than the dX-USB Ultra even though the Singxer was stock and the dX-USB Ultra was powered by two LPS-1's in series to achieve 12V.

 

It's hard to imagine what would happen once we replace all regulators with even better ones, feed SU-1 with LPS-1 and then Crystek CCHD-575/957 series clocks could be replaced by sCLK-EX accordingly.

 

If Singxer were able to sell SU-1 for only 400 (actually it's $379 w/ free international shipping on eBay) bucks, one could only speculate what they would do with SU-2 etc.

 

Not confirmed yet but someone from Taiwan did mention that successor might be released in August

 

https://www.ptt.cc/bbs/Headphone/M.1498290403.A.E42.html

[seeteeyou]

Cybershaft should only sell directly from Japan and they do accept payments via PayPal

 

http://www.cybershaft.jp/overseas01.html

http://www.whatsbestforum.com/showthread.php?20827-Reasonably-priced-dual-master-clock-(10Mhz)-Rb-and-OCXO

 

Interesting comparisons between 50Ω versus 75Ω connectors / cables / connections etc.

 

http://www.audioaficionado.org/showpost.php?p=832200&postcount=15

http://www.audioaficionado.org/showthread.php?t=37172&page=2

 

I'd wait for SOtM's 10MHz clock and let's see if that were anywhere close to the performance of Mutec REF 10.

[seeteeyou]

Not sure about what romaz purchased but he did try one of those PSUs from Kenneth Lau as mentioned below

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/forums/topic/30376-a-novel-way-to-massively-improve-the-sq-of-the-sms-200-and-microrendu/?page=9#comment-617273

On 1/10/2017 at 4:05 PM, romaz said:

I have high respect for my LPS-1 and it is my highest value PSU by far. For sure, it is playing a role in why my current setup sounds better but presently, it is only powering my switch and one of my FMCs. Compared to my SR7, the SR7 is better although to be fair to the LPS-1, the SR7 is better than PSUs I have from Kenneth Lau, Paul Pang, HDPlex and Teradak by an even wider margin.

 

Maybe not quite in the same league when compared to the top dogs?

 

Paul Hynes Design

UpTone Audio UltraCap LPS-1

Vinnie Rossi MINI PURE DC-4-EVR

 

[seeteeyou]

This particular switch is a tried and true one, piece of cake to get rid of the SMPS but most likely it does require 12V PSU from either Paul Hynes or Vinnie Rossi.

 

It's already tested by Kenneth Lau and other audiophiles here in Hong Kong since it's a switch designed for network audio in the first place

 

http://www.hiendy.com/hififorum/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=94358

 

 

http://kakaku.com/item/K0000595626/

http://www.yamada-denkiweb.com/4211142016

http://buffalo.jp/product/wired-lan/lan-hub/bsl-ws-g21m_a/

http://product.rakuten.co.jp/product/-/de1a0cdab98c89fca65e579bc8968c5a/

https://www.amazon.co.jp/BUFFALO-Giga対応-オーディオ向けスイッチングHub-BSL-WS-G2108M-A/dp/B00GNM2P70

 

It might (or might not) draw more than 12 watts (i.e. 12V 1A) so we couldn't tell if one LPS-1 @ 5V plus another LPS-1 @ 7V were any good.

 

Lowest price in Japan should be roughly $275 at the moment, the clock could be replaced easily as shown below

 

 

Not exactly the cheapest choice but it should be the most promising one out there for now.

[seeteeyou]

BTW, here's yet another one for approximately $265 with the M12 industrial Ethernet connectors

 

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=541896358786

http://www.moxastore.com/TN_5308_LV_p/tn-5308-lv.htm

https://store.moxa.com/a/product/tn-5308-series?id=M20090312205

 

 

Much cheaper one for 90 bucks

 

https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=43079417424

[seeteeyou]

REALLY interesting stuff with over 1,800 posts already

 

http://www.usaudiomart.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=1172

https://www.computeraudiophile.com/ca/ca-academy/a-conversation-about-network-audio-aes67-ravenna-and-merging-technologies-r656/?page=2#comment-691193

9 hours ago, rb2013 said:

Obviously these are my subjective ratings YMMV - and yes I have owned (had a loaner) all these for an extended period of time:

 

Anybody else made a direct comparison of AOIP and USB/Ethernet over an extended period of time?  

'Epitome' Hybrid USB/Ethernet GB LAN chain (see post on the prior page and page 100) 500 - YES it's that good!  
'Ultra' Hybrid USB/Ethernet GB LAN chain (details to long to list) 370
BURL B2B DAC with DANTE Brooklyn II/ modded w/LPS power 285
REDNET 3/Cerious Graphene/Mutec 3+ USB (SPDIF)/Antelope OCX (RN wClock) 270
REDNET 3/Cerious/Mutec 3+ USB/Audience au24 se digital cable 250
REDNET 3/Cerious/Mutec 3+ USB (SPDIF reclocker)/AS Sliver Statement dig cable 240 - Right about here is where I felt my old $30k Analog rig was finally surpassed (VPI Super Scout Master Signature/Dynavector XV1-S/all Nordost Vahalla cabling including the VPI tonearm/Bent Audio Silver Step-Up transformers/Conrad Johnson totl tubed Phono Pre-amp/Siemens CCa early '60s NOS tubes).
REDNET 3/Cerious Power Cord 220
Singxer F-1 DC30W/Cerious/Recovery/DCiPur/ iPur2/Startech GB LAN Iso USB 170
Mutec 3+ Smart Clock USB/Cerious Power Cord 155
Singxer F-1 DC30W/Cerious/Recovery/DCiPur/ iPur2 145
PUC2 Lite TeraDak DC30W/Cerious/Regen 135
Singxer F-1 DC30W/Cerious 135
DXIO Silver/TeraDak DC-30W/Cerious 130
Singxer X-1 DC30W/Cerious/Recovery/DCiPur/iPur2 125
PUC2 Lite - USB power 110
Singxer F-1 Stock feed 110
Breeze/Cerious Graph/WBT RCA Nexgen 109
Breeze DU-U8 with Cerious Graphene 108
Breeze DU-U8 (Talema version) 100
Breeze DU-U8 (BingZi version) 95
Hydra Z with LPS 92
Melodious MX-U8 (upgraded caps) 85
Melodious MX-U8 (stock) 81
Gustard U12 (upgraded caps) 76
Gustard U12 stock 72
iDAC DAC2 (used as a DDC) 65
Musiland USB3.0 US Dragon 65
M2Tech EVO with LPS 60
Audiophileo 2 USB Power 50
M2Tech Hiface 40

 

 

[seeteeyou]

4 hours ago, romaz said:

 

Only that the sCLK's internal clock performance no longer matters since that responsibility is being shifted to the REF10's OCXO.

 

55 minutes ago, romaz said:

 

The REF10 might show me that my replacement of 8 clocks will be serious overkill.

 

In that case, there will be a (niche) market for a little something then.

 

BTW, we could already tell what romaz's plan would look like once that digital amp from Chord is released in the future

 

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/chord-electronics-dave.766517/page-42#post_12041809

 

Not quite 746W into 8Ω but there will be more choices for speakers.